, often abbreviated , is a Japanese

animation studio An animation studio is a company producing animated media. The broadest such companies conceive of products to produce, own the physical equipment for production, employ operators for that equipment, and hold a major stake in the sales or rentals ...

and

light novel A light novel (, Hepburn: ''raito noberu'') is a style of young adult novel primarily targeting high school and middle school students. The term "light novel" is a ''wasei-eigo'', or a Japanese term formed from words in the English languag ...

publisher located in

Uji is a city on the southern outskirts of the city of Kyoto, in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. Founded on March 1, 1951, Uji is between the two ancient capitals of Nara and Kyoto. The city sits on the Uji River, which has its source in Lake Biwa. ...

, Kyoto Prefecture. Founded in 1985 by Yoko and Hideaki Hatta, it has produced anime works including ''

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is a Japanese light novel series written by Nagaru Tanigawa and illustrated by Noizi Ito. It was first published in 2003 by Kadokawa Shoten in Japan with the novel ''The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya'', and has since been followed ...

'' (2006), ''

Clannad Clannad () is an Irish band formed in 1970 in Gweedore, County Donegal by siblings Ciarán, Pól, and Moya Brennan and their twin uncles Noel and Pádraig Duggan. They have adopted various musical styles throughout their history, including ...

'' (2007), ''

K-On! is a Japanese four-panel manga series written and illustrated by Kakifly serialized in Houbunsha's '' Manga Time Kirara'' magazine between the May 2007 and October 2010 issues, and also serialized in Houbunsha's '' Manga Time Kirara Car ...

'' (2009), '' Free!'' (2013), ''

Sound! Euphonium is a Japanese novel series written by Ayano Takeda. The story is set in Uji, Kyoto and focuses on the Kitauji High School Music Club, whose concert band is steadily improving thanks to the newly appointed adviser's strict instructio ...

'' (2015), '' A Silent Voice'' (2016), and '' Violet Evergarden'' (2018).

History

Kyoto Animation was co-founded in 1985 by married couple Yoko and Hideaki Hatta; it became a

limited company In a limited company, the liability of members or subscribers of the company is limited to what they have invested or guaranteed to the company. Limited companies may be limited by Share (finance), shares or by guarantee. In a company limited by ...

in 1985 and a

corporation A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and r ...

in 1999. Yoko Hatta, who serves as the company's vice president, had worked as a painter at Mushi Production until she moved to Kyoto after marrying her husband, who serves as president. The company's logo originates from the

kanji are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese ...

''kyō'' (), the first character of

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...

(). Since 2009, Kyoto Animation has hosted the annual Kyoto Animation Awards in three categories: original novels, manga, and scenarios. Some winning submissions are published under the company's KA Esuma Bunko imprint, and have a chance of being later adapted as anime. ''

Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions , also known as ''Chū-2'' for short, is a Japanese light novel series written by Torako, with illustrations provided by Nozomi Ōsaka. The work won an honorable mention in the Kyoto Animation Award competition in 2010, leading the company ...

'', '' Free!'', ''

Beyond the Boundary is a Japanese light novel series written by Nagomu Torii, with illustrations by Tomoyo Kamoi. The work won an honorable mention in the Kyoto Animation Award competition in 2011. Kyoto Animation has published three volumes since June 2012. ...

'' and ''

Myriad Colors Phantom World is a Japanese fantasy light novel series written by Sōichirō Hatano and illustrated by Shirabi. An anime adaptation by Kyoto Animation aired from January to March 2016. Plot In the near future, the accidental release of an experimental vi ...

'' were based on novels that received an honorable mention in this competition. In 2014, the novel '' Violet Evergarden'' became the first and only work so far to win a grand prize in any of the three categories. Kyoto Animation has become recognized for its high production values and "sensitivity to the wonders and quandaries of ordinary life". Unlike most animation studios, the company's employees are salaried rather than freelance workers, and are trained in-house. These practices have been cited as encouraging employees to focus on frame quality rather than production quotas. The company has received praise for the positive treatment of its staff, and was honored by

Women in Animation Women in Animation (WIA) is a non-profit organization with the purpose of furthering, promoting, and supporting female animators in the art, science and business of animation. WIA helps young female artists to find a place in the business world ...

with its Diversity Award in 2020 for its efforts in creating a gender-balanced workforce and encouraging women to enter the industry. In April 2020, the company announced that it would put its work on hiatus for one month due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, later extending the period to the end of May.

Animation Do

An affiliate company, , was established in 2000 to assist production at Kyoto Animation. Originally established as the studio's Osaka office, it was incorporated as a

in 2000, then a

in 2010. Both companies are run by Hideaki Hatta and are run jointly as one. They produce up-and-coming works under the Animation Do label with Kyoto Animation as their main contractor and works where they work as one company alongside Kyoto Animation. They work on most Kyoto Animation projects and many of them have joint signatures. On September 16, 2020, it was announced by the

National Printing Bureau (NPB) is a Japanese governmental agency in charge of the production of Japanese paper money, Japanese yen. It also produces various other products, such as postage stamps and the official governmental gazette. History The Paper Money Office w ...

's ''Kanpō'' publication that Kyoto Animation absorbed Animation Do, which includes all rights and associated properties.

2019 arson attack

On the morning of July 18, 2019, an

arson Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, wat ...

fire at Kyoto Animation's first studio in Fushimi killed 36 people (including directors

Yasuhiro Takemoto was a Japanese animator and television and film director. He worked at Kyoto Animation for almost his entire animation career after joining the company in 1996 until his death in 2019. Career After graduating, he entered at the prestigious Yoyo ...

and

Yoshiji Kigami was a Japanese animator, director and storyboarder. He started working at Shin-Ei Animation, later became part of Animaruya and then he became affiliated with Kyoto Animation. Career When he was young, Kigami was a big fan of Disney movies and ...

), injured 34 others (including the suspect) in varying degrees, and destroyed most of the building's materials and computers. The suspect, 41-year-old Shinji Aoba, later admitted to committing the attack.

Productions

In the tables below, only the productions for which Kyoto Animation was a lead producer are listed.

Anime television series

Anime films

Original video animations

Original net animations

Published light novels

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links

*
Animation Do official website
* {{Authority control Companies based in Kyoto Prefecture Mass media companies established in 1981 Japanese companies established in 1981 Japanese animation studios Mass media in Kyoto Book publishing companies of Japan